Ban on bracelets honoring those killed in action frustrates Marines

Steve Ruark/APRemains of Marine killed in Afghanistan arrives in the U.S., Oct. 13. Some Marines are frustrated at ban over bracelets honoring dead comrades.

Some Marines say they will risk punishment rather than remove bracelets commemorating a comrade killed in action. The Marine Times reports Marine Corps commands across the globe are cracking down on the so-called KIA bracelets.

The Corps considers the bracelets unauthorized jewelry. Marines are only allowed to wear discrete watches and rings, necklaces and simple earrings. The KIA bracelets do not fit the description. The Times reports enforcement of the regulation varies. While some commands take a hard line attitude, others turn a blind eye.

“I came from a unit that lost a lot of men,” Sgt. Darren Covington told the Washington Post. “We wear the bracelets to remember our friends. It shouldn’t be against Marine Corps regulations to remember your buddies, especially when some guys are walking around here with flashy gold watches.”

Another Marine, whose name was not published by the Marine Times said, "They will have to pry it off my cold dead wrist to take it away from me. Don't let them take yours away."

Others say that as Marines it is their duty to follow regulations, but hope Marine Corps leadership will consider allowing Marines to wear the bracelets.

Since 1972, Marines have been authorized to wear a POW/MIA bracelet while in uniform. Those bracelets might have been relevant for Marines of another era, Sgt. Megan Cavanaugh tells the Times, "But in our time, we don't have a lot of missing in action. We don't have a lot of prisoners of war," she said. "There are few ways to make the loss of a Marine bearable, but memorializing them seems to help."

The Times reports it's been told Corps' Uniform Board does not plan to address the issue at this point. However, the Post says the board is taking up the controversy. “They are working the issue fairly aggressively,” said a Marine Corps official who was not authorized to discuss the issue on the record. “We expect a resolution possibly by the end of the year.”